éléments par Chris Wiles

Install software on your computer and you’ll be forgiven for not having the spare time to search for updates. Most applications do not have a software update facility, so unless you go checking, you’ll often never know it’s been updated. With this in mind, and software developers running out of key ideas to add to future revisions to encourage paid upgrades, we’re seeing 'Software Updater' tools being released to the market or added to system maintenance applications. IObit recently released a standalone Software Updater tool this year which we wrote about this month. CCleaner 5.55 is here and the big… [Continue Reading]

We had a shock the other day when cleaning out the office. If you’re anything like us, you tend to hold on to old drives simply because it’s hard to dispose of the data securely. You soon realize you have old hard drives you’ve never dealt with and even obscure NAS drives collected over many years. We found old drives going back to 2000. One solution is to pay for a professional company to pick up, wipe and dispose of these used drives, but this is a costly procedure. Why not do it yourself and save a ton of cash… [Continue Reading]

Anyone who has had to handle software support will know that sometimes explaining by email or attempting to describe an action over the telephone can be a very frustrating experience. We handle support queries on a daily basis and are still perplexed that some users still do not know how to enter their product key or where it should be entered. They attempt to type in the code, get a digit wrong, think they’ve been sold a duff code, won’t accept reason and get angry real quick. There’s now a cheap and easy solution. Captura 8 is one of those… [Continue Reading]

Install the latest security software and most people would consider their system safe. Understandable as most modern suites cover almost every possible scenario from prevention against malicious software through to providing a secure way of interacting with your bank account. There’s one area which is avoided and that’s a lack of a secure tunnel to the outside world and here’s the reason why this is so important. The first thing many people do when they arrive at a station, airport or their hotel, is grab their laptop, smartphone or iPad and search for a Wi-Fi network. Many of us will… [Continue Reading]

If you’re anything like us, you tend to remind yourself to follow-up a website by keeping a tab open. This often remains open indefinitely though, and over time, one tab quickly becomes many and you then move on by opening new browser windows. But there’s a problem with this behavior. Have you noticed the system resources required to keen a browser tab open? Each tab can easily run at up to 150MB, as they contain images and dynamic content to host the web page. You only need ten open tabs and you’re allocating over 1GB of RAM to web pages… [Continue Reading]

Download software from the Microsoft Store and it will either auto-update or you’ll be notified when a new version is available. Problem is, most of our software isn’t downloaded from one source, so we often have no idea when big new updates are available. It’s true some installed software will either auto-update or notify you from within the software itself. Examples include web browsers such as Chrome or Firefox, your security software and Windows. IObit Software Updater is a brand new free tool designed to scan your system for all installed applications, check against a remote database, advise if updates… [Continue Reading]

If you use a laptop with a small SSD, you'll want to make sure you can reclaim as much hard drive space as possible. Many of the default apps Microsoft installs with Windows 10 can take up more space than you might realise and, better still, most can be removed simply and easily. Take the Skype app, as an example. This app is now installed by default as Microsoft is keen to encourage us to use their technology. Problem is, it takes up nearly 0.5GB of your SSD, for an app you may never consider using. O&O AppBuster is a… [Continue Reading]

One of the biggest threats as you browse the internet isn’t hackers trying to get into your computer (a common misconception) or the potential of accidentally installing malicious software. Your security suite should take care of both these issues. No, the single biggest issue is your personal data and the information you leave all over the internet when you share your content, chat with other people and the login information we use to access our online data. What can we do to safeguard our personal data and keep it away from people seeking to exploit us? Here are our top… [Continue Reading]

Although we’d regard ourselves as technically proficient, even we can get caught out online. Over the New Year period we were searching for a product from a reputable brand, seeking the best price available through Google search. Browsing through the shopping results, we found an official store which sold this brand and was offering a discounted new year sale. Looked legit. But the discount was too high and it was tricky to find any definitive location information. The online store was either selling fake products or simply extracting funds with no intention of shipping. Most people trust sources such as… [Continue Reading]

When an existing user purchases a new activation code, they often have problems installing the 'latest' version of their security suite because they often overlook that as part of their subscription they will always have the latest version. This is why the likes of Avast and AVG dropped year version numbers, making it more difficult to know when a major release has been made available. Earlier today Avast released the 19.1 editions of their security products and this is a significant update. First and foremost, neither Avast nor AVG support Windows XP or Vista. If you insist on using the… [Continue Reading]

The rise of homeworking means one thing, trying to focus on work whilst the family and daily chores are going on around you. Get on a conference call and you have to try and eliminate background noise to sound professional. When you’re on a call you suddenly realize how much noise is going on around you. Get in the car and head to a coffee shop and you'll find there are people talking around you -- it’s no better at all. You just cannot seem to get away from surrounding noise. And that’s if you can even get a fast… [Continue Reading]

Boot into your brand new PC and you find you’re welcomed by rather a vanilla operating system, perhaps with a few key default apps installed by the manufacturer. Although it’s initially interesting to start with a blank canvas, you soon realize not only do you have your most important applications installed but the settings and preferences all need to be setup again from scratch. And this can take ages to reconfigure. You could have simply backed up your previous drive and migrated to the new machine, but this isn’t ideal as all your drivers were setup for the previous computer.… [Continue Reading]

Speak to most app developers and they’ll tell you it’s much harder, more complicated and less interesting to produce an Android app, compared to iOS. Indeed, ask for a quote and both will be priced separately as both require separate development time and teams. This might all be about to change with the final first release of a new cross-platform development tool from Google. Imagine a toolkit that you can use to program the functionality, allowing the UI framework to be provided to you separately and seamlessly. Flutter was previewed at the Mobile World Congress earlier this year and is… [Continue Reading]

There are some firms you look at with a kind of wary admiration primarily because they were a marketing pioneer of their time. Or that’s what we thought. Uniblue is one of these companies and, you should believe this is no understatement, it used to be major software developer, with adverts in every location, as little as eight years ago. Before it all went horribly wrong. Now Uniblue has closed the company for good with no prior warning whatsoever. Uniblue was well-known for system maintenance tools such as RegistryBooster which would scan your system, check for unnecessary entries in your… [Continue Reading]

After listening to years of security advice, many of us now use different passwords to access various websites. Problem is, how do you store and synchronize this data across your devices? You can’t remember every unique password. The secret is a password manager which enables you to store a central 'master password' (which you can remember) and then gain access to this securely stored data on any supported device. Problem is, can you trust a centralized password manager after previous security issues? True Key by McAfee is a central password manager from an established security developer (McAfee is owned by Intel) and… [Continue Reading]

The entire point of purchasing a security suite is so you know it has your back. You want it to be assured the company has invested heavily in development to make sure it can counter the latest threats. German-based independent security institute AV-Test regularly tests the latest security suites, pushing them through a range of measures including performance against the latest threats, plus how they impact your system. You don’t want a security suite to slow your PC. The latest October 2018 report displays some interesting results. From our experience, and regular comments we read on our own posts, Malwarebytes… [Continue Reading]

How many of us have time to keep an eye on every website, especially when you need to track the latest news, promotions, offers and deals? Some of us dislike all-in-one apps such as iTunes, but at least they bring together a range of sources within one handy tool. With this in mind, we’ve created an Update Scanner for our Downloadcrew website, which enables you to follow the latest software releases, check for updates against your installed desktop apps, the latest news, store promotions and whether there’s a full software Giveaway available. Update Scanner 2.2 is here and it includes support… [Continue Reading]

There are some tasks we take for granted. One of these is creating and sending PDF files when issuing invoices or providing documents in a readable format you know will be accessible by most users. With Windows, you can use the built-in Print to PDF function, or save the document as a PDF in Microsoft Word. Similarly, whenever you print any document in macOS you can choose to save the file as a PDF. There are plenty of commercial tools to enable you to create a PDF, but most aren’t cheap. Think Adobe Acrobat as a good example -- these tools… [Continue Reading]

We’re constantly reminding users to backup their data. It’s not until you hear of a severe malware attack, where a business is being ransomed over their important documents, do you realize you wish you’d stored securely them in another location. And that’s the important point of backing up your data. It offers an additional safeguard. In the case of ransomware, the easiest solution is to simply wipe your drive and restore a cloned version of your system and you’d be back up and running within minutes. O&O Software has launched O&O DiskImage Professional 14, the latest version of its Windows disk-imaging… [Continue Reading]

Improving your system productivity is essential for getting work done more swiftly. With this in mind, many of us turn to all-in-one maintenance tools so we can optimise our computer, clean junk and fully remove installed applications. It’s just easier to own one tool to perform all your key tasks. Parallels recently launched Toolbox for Mac which offered a number of system tools from a handy drop-down menu. Frankly, when the first Toolbox was released, it offered little more than what was already available in macOS. You could quickly take a screengrab, record your screen, create an archive and more.… [Continue Reading]

Should you keep your system optimized or simply allow Windows to keep your computer in-check? A few years ago, data would build, junk would collate and it was relatively easy to cause a blue screen of death or even stop Windows from booting at all, requiring a system restore. These days Windows 10 is far better engineered and will do a good job keeping your system maintained. With this in mind, system maintenance suites are turning their hand to security, adding features to enable you to keep yourself safe and secure whilst you browse the internet (although your security software should… [Continue Reading]

We handle support for novice computer users and you’ll be surprised how many of these customers do not understand the basics of computing. Sell them security software and many can’t install the new suite as they’ve never fully removed the previous one. So frustrating. The easiest solution is to employ TeamViewer and remotely advise the user via their computer, that than either over the phone or by email. It’s quicker to perform a task yourself than guide someone, which has made the software a godsend for any remote support facility. TeamViewer 14 Preview is here and it’s looking like the… [Continue Reading]

We’ve worked for years with potential eye strain and it’s only recently we’re taking it seriously. The first step was Apple adding a warmer edge to the desktop panel, so by the end of the day you wouldn’t be looking at an LCD displaying sharp blue light. Mojave introduced Dynamic Desktop, which will transition your wallpaper, so it matches both the time of day, your location and the ever-changing sunrise/sunset. Dynamic Desktop will show a bright wallpaper middle of the day, but by 10pm you’ll be seeing a nighttime scene. Dynamic Desktop is clever enough to change your wallpaper depending… [Continue Reading]

Dark mode is a fantastic addition to any operating system, enabling late-night work to more productive. We have the theme switched on as default on Windows 10, which has always suited a darker user-interface. Apple introduced a system-wide dark mode with Mojave and some of the recent apps look hugely better on a dark background. iPhoto is a very good example, making photos pop on the dark shade and editing easier on the eyes. Problem is, you don’t want dark mode on all the time. Some apps don’t quite work for us. Mail is a good example, with odd inverted… [Continue Reading]

Using a virtual operating system has its merits. For developers, it’s the ideal tool for sandboxing your computer so you can test software for bugs before it’s released to beta testing. You can also install your software across a range of operating systems for compatibility. As a consumer, there are valid reasons why you may want to consider a virtual system. You may need to use a Windows computer for work but would like to experiment with a Linux installation. A virtual OS enables you to test new bleeding-edge software or tools where you are wary of the source. Problem? Simply… [Continue Reading]

It wasn’t so long ago, you bought a brand new computer, installed your favorite applications, only to find a few months later it was clearly operating more sluggishly. There were various reasons for this, but the primary reason was a defragmented hard drive. The more you write data to the drive, the more scattered the contents and the physical head spent far longer retrieving the data. We know people who would systematically simply wipe their drive and start again just to regain the speed of their original PC. The other (and far easier solution) was to buy a disk defragmentation… [Continue Reading]

Before any trip, I like to research. Where’s the best place to eat, pick up a decent coffee on the way, other interesting points of interest and more. Google Maps makes this easy. Research online, add a new folder to your places and start saving pointers along your intended route. When you land, simply refer to Google Maps and navigate to your saved locations. Easy. Well, it would if your hire car let you use Google Maps. Google Maps version 5.0 for iOS is here and it brings full CarPlay support via iOS 12 and this is a 'big deal'. When… [Continue Reading]

We handle a lot of support inquiries and one of the most common questions is how do people fully remove installed software, especially a security suite. Problem is, most people do not realize that the software is often in use when they start their computer. This makes it really tricky for Windows to fully remove in-use software from your PC. In theory, next time you boot the uninstall process should continue and remove the rest of the application, but this often fails to execute. Revo Uninstaller Pro 4 has been released and it’s one of those essential applications (more on… [Continue Reading]

Who do you trust in 2018? We often get asked for our security recommendations and it’s a struggle to come up with a definitive answer. We won’t go in to detail in public, but there are reasons why we might avoid recommending a well-known security suite and it’s not just due to recent issues involving potential backdoors either. There is a general consensus that you can trust solid German engineering (VW/Audi issues emissions issues aside) and this same theory should apply to security software. You know your data is secure, your privacy intact and it will perform a solid job… [Continue Reading]

We browse the internet unaware of the amount of personal information made available to websites, social media networks and public forums. Every time you access a site you leave behind traceable information including a unique IP address and timestamp. With this information, anyone can find you rather easily. ISPs, by law, are required to offer this information to the authorities on request. Now, this won’t affect 99.9 percent of people as most users do not have anything to hide, but there are solid reasons why you might want to disguise your identity. Tor Browser 8 is here and it’s regarded as… [Continue Reading]

Finding the right web browser isn’t easy. As a Chrome user for years, I was forced to switch when it went through a much-publicized Mac slowdown, moving to Safari. I became rather impressed with Safari, particularly if you move between the iOS and desktop edition. Problem is, add a Windows PC into this mix and you’ll find there’s little point using Safari. So I switched to Firefox as recent UI changes made it look as fantastic on a Mac as it does on a Windows 10 computer. Google has released Chrome 69 and, as part of its 10th-anniversary celebration, it’s… [Continue Reading]

Although some of us are keen Mac users, most of our work is produced for the Windows operating system. We manage to achieve this via Parallels running on an iMac or MacBook Pro and, frankly, it’s so fast you really do not need to run Bootcamp. It never used to be this way. Back in the late 90s, when Apple still used PPC chips, Windows emulation was dire. Beyond dire. Almost unusable. Even for basic tasks. It made far more sense to use Bootcamp when it was released, even after the migration to the Intel chips, if you needed native-like… [Continue Reading]

Microsoft appears keen to encourage people to use the latest Windows Defender and, frankly, it’s a more-than-adequate security tool. You’re missing some of the features you’ll find in a paid security suite, such as a VPN or 'safe money' but do you really need those features? With the above in mind, security developers such as BitDefender and, more recently Kaspersky, are releasing free versions of their security suites, to encourage people to use, gain familiarity and then upgrade. Let’s face it, once you have a security suite on your computer and you receive a fantastic offer, you’re more likely to… [Continue Reading]

We handle support for people who purchase software and the number one issue we consistently experience is the inability to install updated versions of their favorite software. There are very basic reasons, too. When you first install your software, you’re often asked to reboot. After this procedure, it’s in use. The application may start when you boot your PC, run in the background, checking your system and much more. When you decide to upgrade, people expect to simply install the latest version on top, forgetting the application is being used and that Windows cannot remove active files. The result is,… [Continue Reading]

An office suite is regarded as an essential part of your daily work toolkit, whether you’re a big business or a retired individual wanting to keep on top of daily tasks. So you want to make the right choice, without spending a huge amount of money. Although it’s too easy to subscribe to Office 365 and use the suite across devices, we sometimes wonder if we really need the functionality? Do you use your word processor for more than a few essential documents or your spreadsheet to manage basic finances? If not, you might as well take a second look… [Continue Reading]

You know the score. You’re in the middle of cooking dinner and realize you’re missing a vital ingredient, but home alone. Do you have enough time to jump in the car and fetch it or can you leave it out? If only there was a social network which enabled you to reach out to other people and ask them if they could pick the item for you, dropping it off on their way home. Pinga is an iOS app that puts people in touch with each others to help solve a situation. If you’re locked out of home with just… [Continue Reading]

People are worried about their personal security. Who do you trust? Facebook recently admitted it tracks just about everything you do whilst using its network, whereas one of the biggest technology companies in the UK, Dixons Carphone, announced a huge data loss. You have to ask yourself, if a technology company can’t safeguard your data, who can you trust? On top, do you trust your web browser? What’s it storing, what information does it pass to the manufacturer and to the website you are browsing? With this in mind, Cliqz decided it can do this all much better. The German… [Continue Reading]

When you’re on a vacation, you want to make sure you can get the best possible photos from your environment. This meant (and still does for many) dragging around a huge DSLR camera with telephoto lens all day. Problem is, apart from the weight, dragging a DSLR can attract all the wrong attention. You look like a semi-professional commercial photographer on an unauthorized shoot and, travel to places such as Miami and Los Angeles, and there are lots of locations where you can’t take your sizeable camera. Luckily the iPhone is now at a stage where most photos can be… [Continue Reading]

How many people backup their data? A decreasing number. The new standard is to upload our data to the cloud, storing our most important files and documents in a remote location and then synchronizing those files across our various devices. Backing up our data is old-school, right? There’s certainly an element of truth to this. These days, along with the cloud, if you have a password manager, retrieving your important data now takes minutes, not hours. Gone are the days when your system would crash and you’d have to start recovering your entire drive to get access to your system.… [Continue Reading]

How do you store your passwords? You’ll be surprised. Some people use the same memorable pass for most websites, but if this is compromised it offers the fraudster access to every site where you used the single login. Other people simply write down their passwords. To be fair, if you can trust the people in your household, there’s no problem with this, but how do you access your website logins on the road? Do you take your notepad with you, containing every single login and, no doubt, your bank password? The wisest solution is to put your trust into a password manager and… [Continue Reading]

When traveling, we like to take as little as possible. We don’t want to be dragging a huge 15" laptop on the road, but we still need access to our files, data and even our favorite apps. With this in mind, often we carry around a small USB stick with our most important data. Simply plug the USB stick into any computer and you have full and secure access to your files, without having to worry about copying them to the temporary PC. PortableApps.com has just launched Platform 15 and this is their platform for managing your portable apps. Portable apps… [Continue Reading]

People are becoming rather wary of the security they trust, particularly after the recent bad press. With this in mind, we’ve noted that a few people are deciding to stick with Windows Defender, which is built into Windows 10. Sadly for Mac users, if you want anti-malware software, you need to rely on a third party and one of the many brands. Or you could just download from the official Apple App Store where you know each application has been vetted before inclusion. SEE ALSO: Microsoft brings Windows Defender Browser Protection extension to Google Chrome But, there are numerous downloads available which will… [Continue Reading]

Are your PC’s drivers up-to-date? It’s not always easy to find out, but worth checking – there could be a pile of performance enhancements and bug fixes just waiting to be installed. IObit Driver Booster 5 PRO takes away all your driver management hassles by checking for new releases, downloading and installing driver updates, all with a single click. When should you consider updating your drivers? We can think of one scenario. When you build a new computer and buy an off-the-shelf graphics card, often you would install the drivers from the disc provided (assuming your PC has a disc drive)… [Continue Reading]

Everyone has a favorite go-to workout routine to keep fit. Do you prefer to spin, participate in CrossFit, head to the gym and figure your own routine or, perhaps, an all-body circuit class? There is no shortage of options, but sometimes too many options can get confusing and it’s good to get some guidance based on your goals. One solution is your own personal trainer, in the form of your smartphone. Luckily you can take your smartphone anywhere (often including the gym), meaning there’s no reason why you can’t have a program downloaded to an app. Freeletics is one of the… [Continue Reading]

After a long flight, the first thing we do, as soon as we hit the runway, is switch our phone out of airplane mode and check our messages, emails and make sure we can connect to the local mobile network. The problem is, this is expensive and most users mobile contract does not offer them free roaming, especially at long-haul destinations. You want to be connected to Wi-Fi as soon as possible. What’s the first thing we do when we arrive at our new hotel? Search for and connect to the Wi-Fi. Any wireless connection which we think resembles the… [Continue Reading]

There are people who swear behind a password manager (and we’re one of them) and others who think to store all your passwords, logins and personal info, in one database, is asking for trouble. They could be right. Without pointing fingers, a few popular password managers have been hacked and data leaked in the past, although as your data is highly encrypted, it’s unlikely to be cracked. You could simply write down all your passwords, offline. We know people who have done this (including bank login information), but if this is stolen, then you lose everything. The benefits of using… [Continue Reading]

As a US citizen, you’d think returning to your own country should enable quick and easy access through immigration? Sadly, not. We’ve been in this situation ourselves, such as flying into Miami, where if you land behind a few incoming flights, the queue for the Global Entry kiosks can be hours long. Often you’re put in one big queue with everyone else including international travelers with an ESTA visa, all wanting to use the same devices. What if there was a way to glide past immigration without having to even use the Global Entry machines or queue for an immigration officer? There’s… [Continue Reading]

Most users seem to think Windows is locked down after installation, where it makes it almost impossible for anyone to gain access to your computer. It’s only after you install malicious software are security concerns raised, but these are typically intercepted by third-party security software. Problem is Windows ships with a middle ground configuration where it is forced to compromise between security and compliance. As an example, the geolocation service is switched on by default so applications can determine where you are located. For the security conscious, users might not want to allow applications to know where they are. Alternatively,… [Continue Reading]

Buy a lightweight entry-level laptop for the road and it’s likely to ship with a small drive. A 128GB SSD is often the norm and you’ll soon find yourself battling the system for storage space. Using the cloud is one option, keeping files away from your computer and downloading on demand. Realistically though, how much space would these use and you’ll require a solid internet connection just to be able to access the data. Not always ideal away from the office. Another option is to use a tool designed to check over your system and remove unnecessary, old and redundant… [Continue Reading]

Nearly every company deploys network monitoring tools which enable the IT team to keep a constant eye on remote servers. Downtime costs money. Of course, network monitoring isn’t limited to remote servers. It can be used to manage your local network and that’s why a tool such as O&O Software’s O&O Syspectr can come in handy. You can use this tool to remotely manage PCs on your network, automatically deploy software updates, check drives for potential issues, remotely shut down and check for unauthorized access. In a surprise move, O&O Syspectr has gone completely free of charge as of today. It’s… [Continue Reading]

It’s a valid question. In 2018, how many people buy a brand new drive and then partition it, splitting the drive into smaller chunks? There’s a reason why this is beneficial. You could store your photos on a single partition and then simply backup the entire partition. Assigning a drive letter to each partition can improve productivity. If you know all your work is on your "V:" drive, then it simply makes it easier to locate the drive and find your files. Buying a brand new drive is an excellent way of improving your computer. An SSD, with no moving parts,… [Continue Reading]

There’s so much negative press about 'mature' security software from the likes of Kaspersky, maybe it’s time to consider an alternative? And it’s not limited to Kaspersky. Brands such as Norton have been questioned recently by allowing Russian authorities to examine source code for potential backdoors. In our experience, people avoid change and often only seek an alternative when their system (somewhat ironically) is compromised. Little do people know that they are actually fewer daily threats than they realize, unless you spend the day downloading dodgy software or looking at rogue websites, your everyday computing experience will be trouble-free. With… [Continue Reading]

If you have a large garden in need of a re-design, this can end up costing far more than you realize. Factor in a landscape designer, hiring a horticulturist and builders to lay paving flags, the costs soon add up. You might be tempted to tackle this yourself. Problem is, you still need to hire a designer to interpret your ideas and, frankly, this might not save you much money at all. There’s an easier way and we recently deployed Garden Planner to redesign the side and rear of our home with some rather ingenious results. Garden Planner is a… [Continue Reading]

Many of us rely on free basic security, thinking that it offers comprehensive protection against the latest threats. Indeed, many free security tools do not include real-time protection, only running on demand. With the rise of ransomware, it’s proving to be an easy way to obtain a quick release fee from individuals. No-one wants to lose their data and, if you work from home, you cannot afford to spend time trying to recover your data or paying for a professional to fix your PC. Many will pay the ransom to secure their encrypted data. Acronis has released a free tool,… [Continue Reading]

There are so many options out there for finding and booking a discounted hotel. Indeed, there are websites which will attempt to collate various booking options to pull together the best deals in a single location. Although it’s great to obtain a discount from your hotel (and let’s face it here, if you call the hotel direct, you’ll often be able to negotiate your own deal), we want a website which pulls together feedback from people who have stayed in the hotel, take this feedback seriously, providing a good deal on the back of this. Tablet Hotels has recently become… [Continue Reading]

Sometimes we think email is taking over our lives. If you’re anything like ourselves, we find our day is spent answering support emails, often writing the same replies to different people. Ideally, we’d deploy tools to write these replies for us. The next best option is a phrase automation tool, such as PhraseExpress 13, which has just received a huge update. PhraseExpress 13 is a tool that enables you to expand memorable phrases in longer words and even sentences. As a example, if you find you’re writing the same paragraphs to multiple people, simply set up the phrases you want to… [Continue Reading]

TeamViewer GmbH has released the final version of TeamViewer 13, its remote access tool for Windows, Linux and Mac computers, with ChromeOS, iOS, Android and Windows App editions. The primary focus of version 13 is iOS screen sharing, which enables a technician to troubleshoot an iPhone or iPad from their desktop, in real time. Ideal if a customer has support query from the iPad and you need to guide them through solving their issue. File transferring between remote and local devices has been improved. You can now quickly see and monitor the files being transferred and queue multiple stacks of files… [Continue Reading]

We can’t be the only people who make finding the best coffee one of our priorities when visiting a new city. Frankly, it’s become a bit of a mission. You could do some research in advance, scour websites and recommendations, but there’s an easy way of finding the best location for a good coffee without requiring tedious pre-planning. We’ve collated three of the most popular apps for searching, locating and enjoying the best coffee in your new city. First up is Beanhunter, which is a simple tool for searching for the nearest (but, sadly, not necessarily the best) local coffee shop. We were… [Continue Reading]

Backing up your data to the cloud makes sense. But using an existing service such as Dropbox is more complicated as these cloud services insist on mirroring your content across your devices. The most obvious solution is to create your own cloud. This is easy to achieve through a service such as Amazon S3 (Amazon Simple Storage Service). The Amazon S3 is a cost-effective virtual hard drive in the cloud. You are charged depending the amount of storage you use, the number of times you access your content and the location. It’s competitively priced, too. We backup our server content… [Continue Reading]

Let’s be fair, for reading a PDF your average end user will rarely need anything more than a simple reader, so Preview on the Mac or Edge on your Windows 10 PC will suffice. For business users, portable document format files offer a method for sharing commercial-grade documents which can be marked up before they are sent to a printer. Indeed, if you share your PDF through the cloud, anyone can download, view, add a comment and save it back for others to read the comments and make changes. Adobe has just released Acrobat Reader DC 2018 and it’s available free… [Continue Reading]

You have to admire some of the recent design work from Microsoft. Windows 10 has transitioned into a robust and visually-appealing operating system, whilst Office 2016 really is a superb, well-designed, cross-platform office suite. In addition, Office 365 offers reasonably priced subscription and includes a fair number of licenses for your devices. We have Office 365 installed on our Mac and Windows computers and it’s seamless switching between the two platforms. So, why would you need anything else? That’s certainly a valid question. We do not see too many Office 365 subscribers complaining about the price and home users can pick… [Continue Reading]

Using more than one password is somewhat essential. Remembering all your passwords is a lot trickier. Remembering them and keeping them safe is even tougher. There are plenty of password managers out there, but which one do you choose? We’re big fans of 1Password, primarily due to the seamless cross-device synchronization. Using a dedicated password manager offers a number of advantages. Every time you create a website login, the password is saved to your manager. If you need to create a secure password, it can do this too. Next time you open your smartphone, you’ll find your password has appeared… [Continue Reading]

Keeping in touch with other users is essential for your business. We use Skype to keep in touch with contacts all over the world, from freelancers writers, through to key contacts. With this in mind, all we want is a relatively simple tool that enables us to perform our business without distractions. Sadly, Microsoft has made major changes to the Skype iOS and Android apps and those changes haven’t gone down well. Microsoft previewed the same changes in the desktop edition, a few months ago, and we quickly removed the preview. Now Microsoft has released the preview features as a standalone Skype… [Continue Reading]

Everyone will tell you that you really need to backup your data. It’s simply the easiest way to quickly recover your computer if you suffer from malware or even a ransomware attack. Backing up your data also makes sense for testing new software. Make a system backup, test as required, then simply revert back to the previous state by restoring the backup. Paragon has released Hard Disk Manager 16 and it’s been made available completely free of charge in a "Basic" mode. These basic features include comprehensive backup tools. You can either backup your entire drive (or partition), individual files and… [Continue Reading]

WinZip International LLC has released WinZip 22, a major release of what is perhaps the world’s best-known archiving tool. Version 22 builds on changes introduced in version 21, primarily with speed and safety improvements. WinZip 22 ships in three editions -- Standard, Pro and Enterprise (aimed at corporate users). The majority of the new features are available in Standard and Pro. The primary difference between Pro and Standard are the backup features. What’s new in 22? WinZip claims the new version is much faster, with a startup time cutting 50 percent from the previous version. You can also move files more… [Continue Reading]

There are a wide number of system optimization tools on the market, many with varying degrees of success. There are few we’d care to recommend. With this in mind, we were pleased to hear IObit has released IObit Advanced SystemCare 11, its hugely comprehensive all-in-one PC optimization suite. So, what’s new? The new Security Reinforce module will locate, advise and fix security weaknesses it finds on your PC. The Homepage Advisor will monitor changes to your web browser homepage, when you install new software (does this really still happen in 2017?). A new Disk Optimization engine will attempt to improve… [Continue Reading]

Install software and it’s soon out-of-date. Developers release rapid updates when they find issues, often reported by end users. Having the latest version can be important. Software can conflict and slow your PC, be compromised, wrongly report information and need to be updated to support the latest operating system patch. Unless you’re prepared to go through every single installed application, it’s tricky to keep on top of the available updates. Avira Software Updater 2 is a free tool from the trusted German security developer. Install it on your PC and it will immediately go to work by scanning your entire system for… [Continue Reading]

Adobe has released Adobe Photoshop Elements 2018 and Adobe Premiere Elements 2018, brand new versions of its consumer-level photo-editing and video-editing suites. The 2018 versions remain standalone tools -- allowing users to purchase them outright -- and come with a number of new and improved features to build on previous updates. An interesting new feature for Photoshop Elements 2018 is Open Closed Eyes. When taking photos of kids, you want to get the best possible shot, but it’s not always possible to line everything up correctly. You might secure a great action shot with a decent smile, but find the eyes… [Continue Reading]

Go out and buy a brand new Windows 10 PC and it usually ships configured with a host of trial software, often sponsored by the software manufacturer, to encourage you to switch to an alternative office suite, security or photo management tool. You could spend time migrating all your data manually. Out of the box, Windows makes it relatively easy to transfer your preferences across to your new machine. The problem starts when you have a host of installed applications and want to get these transferred and setup as quickly as possible. One solution is Laplink PCmover, which has been around… [Continue Reading]

We wouldn’t define ourselves as "Mac users", although we do use a Mac, quickly switching between OS X and Windows 10. It’s been this way for nearly 20 years, although 20 years ago, emulating Windows on a PPC Mac was far from a pleasant experience. Roll forward 20 years and this is a vastly different and much nicer experience, primarily thanks to Apple’s move to Intel processors. On our quad-core iMac, Windows 10 flies at almost native speeds. Sure, it’s not quite as fast as running Windows 10 on Bootcamp, but it’s more than acceptable. We even create our website… [Continue Reading]

You’re busy using your PC and it’s suddenly 2004 again. Your system is running slowly and your drivers are to blame. Should you keep your drivers updated? Usually, the rule is "if it’s not broken, don’t try and fix it." It’s simply not true that out-of-date drivers will slow or your hinder your computer. Usually, Windows itself will make sure you have the most relevant drivers for your system and, if you have Windows 10, you’ll usually have the latest drivers. And even if you’re using Vista, and there are newer drivers, it doesn’t necessarily mean your system will be… [Continue Reading]

It doesn’t seem that long ago that all website editing was made by hand, coded carefully, put live and tested until the page worked as planned. The advantage of producing web pages in this manner is that it developed coding skills and enabled just about anyone to get a basic website live. Tools such as Dreamweaver came along in the early 00’s and changed everything, offering the ability to create web pages from simple templates, even closing off areas to non-developers so people making site changes could only edit the text components across a site. Adobe Brackets is an old-school code editor produced by… [Continue Reading]

You may ask yourself why on earth would you need a specific tool to create a PDF from an application when Windows 10 has the ability to quickly print as a PDF? A few years ago, PDF tools were all the rage. You had to spend big bucks for Adobe’s Acrobat and Nitro to generate a document. And business users paid the price, too. For a good reason. You need a commercial-level tool to create documents suitable for a professional environment and, in particular, for printed material. If want to print leaflets, your commercial printer will request a PDF and… [Continue Reading]

Do you wince when your partner suggests you head to IKEA on a Sunday morning? Everyone seems to have decided that IKEA is their goto store for furnishing a room and it can be bedlam at a weekend. And that’s if you can get into the car park. Luckily Apple has made the task a lot easier by adding augmented reality to iOS 11. Simply put, the new feature enables a person to move around objects within a virtual environment. As a result, IKEA has released Place, which is an iOS app which will take your room and enable you to… [Continue Reading]

iTunes has to be the marmite of applications. Essential for getting content onto your iPhone, but frustratingly bloated and slow. Worse, iTunes is designed for the lazy user, making it super-easy to purchase your content directly from within the application. You can, of course, transfer your media files to iTunes, by simply dragging and dropping the content and iTunes will handle the artwork and upload your files. But only if they are of the supported format. If you’ve ripped your CDs in the FLAC format, you can’t get this onto iTunes unless you’ve converted the files elsewhere. If you have a… [Continue Reading]

People prefer to workout in different environments. There are those who prefer to push themselves in a competitive situation, with a group of individuals. With this in mind, attending a class or going to the gym with a workout partner will fulfill your goals. On the flipside, there are plenty of individuals who would like to get fit but are put off by the thought of walking into the gym, feel too unfit to be competitive or do not feel the desire to get fit in front of other people. Either way, there are ways of improving your fitness, on… [Continue Reading]

There are so many methods for keeping up with your daily tasks that you need a task manager to keep them all centralized. We can’t tell you how many times we’ve had various calendars auto-group our events into one central database, multiple times. My Workspace from Microsoft is an Office 365 menu bar tool for Mac users. Although it’s only in development stage, it has potential. The basic idea is to bring all your Office 365 information into one central location, so it’s immediately accessible. Launch My Workspace and you’ll need to login to your Office 365 account. Once this is achieved,… [Continue Reading]

There are many cloud-based synchronization services, including Dropbox, Google Drive, SugarSync and others. These services all use the same method of synchronizing your files. Choose the data you want across your computers and the content is uploaded to the cloud and then made available across your other devices. The issue here can be if you don't have fast broadband, making uploading huge files problematic. The answer is a peer-to-peer service where your data remains on one device whilst it’s synchronized to others, whether you own these devices or they are authorized users. Resilio Sync is free P2P technology from the developers of… [Continue Reading]

They say everyone has a book in them. Using this theory, everyone should have a song, too. But, it’s not as easy to create a track from scratch. You can lay down a beat, but you really need a keyboard to control input and also some basic composition understanding, such as how to create a chord. An easier way is to, well, borrow from other people. Effectively that’s how a DJ will learn his trade. They take songs created by other bands and add their own components or simply mix together for one continuous track. Obviously, it goes without saying that you… [Continue Reading]

When you head away on your travels, we always recommend hiring a car to find the best locations and get away from the tourists. But, hiring a car and driving around a new city can be time-consuming and stressful when you look for a location to park your car. We’re not sure about everyone else, but we have a tendency to over-rely on the fantastic Google Maps and/or Waze when travelling as both apps will direct you to your destination, usually offering the quickest method available, whilst you focus on your driving. The latest Google Maps will now find parking spots along the way… [Continue Reading]

We have quite a few external drives, mostly with content we never use. Backed up old data. It wasn’t that long ago we’d backup data to an external drive long before using the cloud. You could make use of these drives for other purposes (for example, why not shift your music collection on to one), but you go and wipe the contents and then realize, later, you deleted all your old accounts or important photos. The solution is a file recovery application such as Acronis Revive 2017 -- yes, a brand new consumer tool from Acronis. Acronis Review 2017 is one key… [Continue Reading]

Whilst dealing with malicious software is an ongoing issue, people overlook problematic software, downright stubborn applications and unwanted bundleware that can be difficult to fully remove from your system. We can’t tell you how many people install security software, uninstall using Add/Remove Programs only to find new security won’t install as the previous suite wasn’t fully removed. Uninstaller will find, report and ask if you want to remove unwanted browser plugins, bundleware (where an application has auto-installed other software without your permission or knowledge) and extensions and similar files. You can list installed software by size, when they were last accessed… [Continue Reading]

Backing up your files is essential, especially with the rise of ransomware. No business user can afford to be without their important data, even if some are securely stored in the cloud. By backing up your files, if you suffer from any kind of attack or system error, you can simply use your backup tool to restore a previous state. However, what happens if you use an external drive to backup your data and ransomware tools lock out your entire computer and connected devices? This is where the brand new True Image 2018 will help as it now includes anti-ransomware protection. Why… [Continue Reading]

We still use Skype. It’s still a decent tool to be able to converse with a wide range of colleagues spread across the world and, frankly, most people we need to communicate with are on Skype (or have access to a Skype account, at least). Recent changes to the mobile version caused more than a few eyebrows to be raised. Luckily we don’t use the mobile edition, so when Microsoft announced changes to the desktop edition, this had us worried. Windows 10 users will receive the update automatically, as it’s built into your operating system, but Windows 8/7 and Mac… [Continue Reading]

With an ever-rising number employees wanting to work from home or going freelance, how do you bring these team members together? There are plenty of messenger tools aimed at business owners, including those from heavyweights such as Facebook and Microsoft. Problem is, adopt one of these tools and you might find that they change direction and are aimed towards flirting teenagers rather than business users. A few years ago we’d use the rather fantastic ICQ to keep in touch with international colleagues before that moved in a completely new direction. At one stage everyone was on ICQ. Skype became the go-to… [Continue Reading]

You give your computer a spring clean by removing a ton of files you’ve stored for years. Then you realize a few weeks later that you accidentally deleted important documents or old photos and there’s no quick and obvious way of retrieving them. The solution is a dedicated file recovery application. There are few better than Auslogics File Recovery 7 and we’re offering you the full version, worth $29.95, across this weekend. It’s always worth having a file recovery program within your suite of system tools. It doesn’t matter where your file is located or the format of the drive.… [Continue Reading]

If you’re anything like us, you land after a long plane journey, slightly shattered and attempting to adjust to your new time zone then once you’ve finally left passport control and picked up your bags, you simply want to grab a taxi and get to your hotel as quickly as possible. To achieve this, many of course choose to book an Uber. When the process works smoothly, everything is fine. But, sadly, Uber drivers aren’t always offered the same privileges as regular taxis, so you have to somehow navigate your way to a pickup location. To do this, a phone… [Continue Reading]

Buy a new computer and you’ll often find it ships with one big partition, which can be inconvenient. We usually allocate space on a drive to our music collection, documents and other important files. By partitioning one large hard drive in to separate drives, it makes it easy to manage, backup and migrate content. You can perform basic partitioning tasks within Windows, such as creating, resizing or assigning a new drive label. However, we’d always recommend a complete partitioning toolkit and there’s few better than EaseUS Partition Master 12.5 Free. At a basic level, the user-interface contains every tool you’ll require to create,… [Continue Reading]

We used to be a huge Paragon Software supporter, met the company a few times in London to discuss strategies, but in the past couple of years it has almost completely disappeared under the radar, despite having a fantastic range of products across its portfolio. Whilst Acronis and our friends at O&O Software have powered forward, Paragon appears to have taken a step back. Whether this is because it is focusing on its core market, Germany, or it moved in to the corporate market, it’s unclear. Either way, we’d still recommend its products and and wrote about the updated Paragon Backup… [Continue Reading]

How often do you hear "it won’t happen to me", which is the primary reason many of us do not bother to backup our data. Sure, like us you can store some of your most important files in the cloud, but that has storage limitations and none of us wants to spend time trying to salvage our computer when we’re pressed for time. The rise of ransomware means your computer is vulnerable, even if you have the latest security software. Once your files are encrypted, short of paying the ransom, there’s little else you can do. The most obvious solution… [Continue Reading]

As Summer continues relentlessly, why not escape the sun and spent some time optimizing your PC? From today, 4 August 2017, you’ll be able to do just that thanks to our 48-hour Downloadcrew Giveaway, which is for a year’s license for Advanced SystemCare 10.5 PRO, worth $19.95. This package contains an entire library of essential tools to help you clean up, optimize, maintain and secure your PC. The fantastic thing about this giveaway is that it’s for the current version of Advanced SystemCare 10.5 PRO, so it offers full support for Windows 10 Creators Update, including the ability to clean up… [Continue Reading]

Every year, with a rather confusing release schedule, Kaspersky’s global office will launch and announce their current range, but only in a select number of territories. As an example, Kaspersky Internet Security 2018 and Total Security 2018 are available in the United States, Australia, Malaysia, but not in the United Kingdom, Europe and most other countries. The launch for the rest of the world will happen in early September when the products are fully localized. All is not lost though. If you want to download the 2018 edition, earlier than the official launch in your territory, the US English version is available for… [Continue Reading]

Although we’re still not convinced you really need additional third-party real-time protection on a Mac, you could always install an "on demand" service which, rather than running continuously in the background, will scan your computer when you’re not trying to render animation, export a 4K video or crunch numbers, which all require vital CPU cycles. Step up Malwarebytes for Mac 3, which was released yesterday. The previously titled Malwarebytes Anti-Malware was a huge success on the Windows platform, both as a free and premium version and it has now fully transitioned to the Mac OS. Available as a free on-demand scanner,… [Continue Reading]

A password manager should be an essential tool. Unless you’re prepared to use the same password across many sites (which is a huge security hazard) or have a memory like Einstein, trying to remember all your passwords is nearly impossible. One solution would be to write your passwords on paper, which you keep at home. We know people that do this and there’s nothing wrong with a hard copy, provided it's kept super-safe. Problem is, if you need to access a website when you holiday or on the road, you don’t have your passwords to hand. The obvious solution is a… [Continue Reading]

Do you need security software for your Mac? Whenever we’ve installed any security suite on our Macs they seriously reduce the effectiveness of our computer with almost the minimum advantage. Apple’s Gatekeeper is designed to stop you installing malicious software, anti-phishing tools prevent dodgy websites from extracting your personal information, whilst the internal firewall can safeguard you from intruders. Kaspersky is one of the many security developers who still believe Mac users need additional security and has released Internet Security 18 for Mac. The Mac version ships with some of the features you’d expect from the Windows edition, including Safe Money… [Continue Reading]

Despite the rise of fast broadband and various social sharing cloud services, it’s always wise to archive your files for distribution. Indeed, in many cases you never know who is going to download your shared files, so you want to pack them up in the smallest possible archive so the downloader can obtain them as quickly as possible. An archive management tool is one of our go to applications, especially when working with files each and every day. There are free archive management tools which enable you to handle your files, but there’s nothing as comprehensive as PowerArchiver 2017, which… [Continue Reading]

Mention 'ftp' and most people think back to a term you’d hear in the late 90s, not realizing the technology is still used behind the scenes to upload/download files to any remote server. Need to update files on your website? This will be handled by the file transfer protocol. Transmit has been one of first choice applications for our Macs, and Panic has just released a major new upgrade, v5, which is built from the ground up to be faster and more efficient. For us, Transmit is an essential tool. Apart from using the transfer software to get files to… [Continue Reading]

Accessing your data is becoming tougher with two-way authentication, multiple password entry options and having to answer 'secret' questions where you can’t always remember the answer. The most obvious answer is to write down your information, passwords and other login information. Problem is, this is no good if you’re using your laptop on the road or working away from home. The solution is a dedicated password manager which will enable you to store and retrieve your login information from a single secure master pass. This means you only need to remember the single password to access the rest of your collection… [Continue Reading]

Everybody needs some way of compressing and extracting files, but sometimes the built-in zip capabilities in Windows just don’t cut it. And what happens if you receive a file compressed in some format you’ve never heard of?

The answer lies with PowerArchiver 2015. This is one of the most comprehensive archiving tools you’ll find, capable of extracting from over 50 different formats. It can also write to all key formats too, including --of course -- Zip, as well as 7-zip, TAR, GZIP and even ISO.

PowerArchiver can be accessed from within Windows Explorer or via its own Windows Explorer-like interface, making it easy to get to grips with. New in 2015 was a Preview window, allowing you to peek inside archives without having to extract files first.

Not only can you easily extract files from archives, you can create them too, plus convert between different formats and create self-extracting archives for others to access with the minimum of fuss. There are also tools for encoding and decoding UU, XX, MIME and yENC formats, plus a handy repair tool for fixing broken Zip archives.

Worried about security? PowerArchiver 2015 offers a multitude of encryption and password-protection options: it supports up to 256-bit AES Zip and 7-zip encryption, plus PAE support allows you to encrypt your files one of five different ways.

PowerArchiver also comes with an innovative queuing system that allows you to queue up compression, extraction and backup jobs to prevent them attempting to run simultaneously. Support for UAC elevation and VSS also make the program more flexible than its rivals, allowing you to compress files that may be in use by another application such as databases or Outlook .pst files.

As if that wasn’t enough, PowerArchiver 2015 also includes built-in tools for sharing files via FTP, backing up files to a schedule, burning files to disc or copying them to an ISO for burning elsewhere.

All of this can be yours with PowerArchiver 2015 -- it works beautifully on every Windows version from Windows 2000 all the way up to Windows 10 and Server 2012.

Giveaway: we’ve got a limited number of free PowerArchiver 2015 Standard licenses to give away, worth $22.95 each. They’re offered on a strictly first-come, first-served basis, and the giveaway offer starts midday December 21 and expires on December 22 at midday EST, so get to Downloadcrew Giveaway and get your code!

It’s that time of the year where it’s a great time to pick up a software bargain. Through December and the Christmas holiday season, the Downloadcrew Software Store has various software deals that are worth some consideration. Best of all, the Downloadcrew “Giveaway” site returns this Christmas, with five superb exclusive full software giveaway offers, for everyone.

You may have picked up a brand new Windows 8 computer during the festive season. If so, the first thing you’ll want to do is pick up a security suite to keep your system secure. The Downloadcrew Software Store is packed full of security offers from Bitdefender, AVG, Kaspersky, Avira and other brands.

Many homes have more than one computer and keeping them all protected can get expensive. However, if you invest in Bitdefender Internet Security 2013 [3-PC] can be used to ensure the safety of three PCs for just $29.95. Every computer should have at least an antivirus tool installed, and it’s hard to find something that’s better value than Bitdefender Antivirus Plus 2013 [1-PC] which costs just $5.95 with a massive reduction of 85 percent.

AVG

You’ll also find the latest 2013 versions of the most popular security tools including AVG Anti-Virus 2013. This industry standard antivirus tool is available for the massively discounted price of $9.95 – that’s a colossal 75 percent off the MSRP. For a more complete security solution, take a look at AVG Internet Security 2013 which includes an added firewall, spam filter and more – all for just $17.99 (or a 67-percent discount). The most complete security package comes in the form of AVG Premium Security 2013 Complete Bundle, which includes four separate applications worth a total of $130 -- but you can buy the collection at a generous 69-percent discount for just $39.95.

Store highlights include the multi-device Kaspersky ONE, which will enable you to support three different devices (three PCs, two PCs and a Mac or, perhaps, two PCs and one Android device. The choice is yours). Available for only $24.95, 69 percent off MSRP. Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 starts at $19.95 or 67 percent off MSRP.

System maintenance and PC optimization tools help keep your brand new system in check while you continue to enjoy using your PC. System maintenance tools enable you to remove unwanted startup items, erase clutter and temporary files, personalize your computer and much more.

Everyone needs a backup tool, whether this is to store important files in a secure location or to make a 1:1 copy of your hard drive, to safeguard against system failure. There are few better backup tools than True Image 2013 by Acronis (Acronis True Image 2013), available for only $29.99, which is currently 40 percent off MSRP.

PowerDirector 11 Ultimate, which bundles PowerDirector 11 with 22 NewBlueFX effects, is yours for only $99.99, a saving of 23 percent from MSRP. Better still, you get a free CyberLink LabelPrin 2.5, worth $19.95, with every order! PowerDirector 11 Ultra is yours for $79.95, a saving of 20 percent from MSRP, also shipping with the free bundle. Media Suite 10 Ultra, which is CyberLink’s 11-in-1 multimedia suite, is yours for $89,95, or 31-percent off MSRP.

Last, but not least, Downloadcrew Giveaway. Between Saturday December the 22nd and Tuesday January the 1st 2013, we’ll be giving away five full software applications. Three of these applications are fully Windows 8 compatible. You won’t be disappointed with these offers. At this stage, we do not know which giveaway will run first or in which order, but we recommend keeping one eye on the Downloadcrew Facebook page, or bookmark the Giveaway website and we’ll announce more info next week!

This time of the year is a great one to pick up some technology bargains and the Downloadcrew Software Store is no exception. In addition to the regular deals, there are some extra-special Black Friday/Cyber Monday offers that run until the end of November.

We open with some great savings from CyberLink. PowerDirector 11 Ultimate, which bundles PowerDirector 11 with 22 NewBlueFX effects, is yours for only $99.99, a saving of 23 percent from MSRP. Better still, you pick up a free bundle worth $59.90 with every order! PowerDirector 11 Ultra is yours for $79.95, a saving of 20 percent from MSRP, also shipping with the free bundle. Media Suite 10 Ultra, which is CyberLink’s 11-in-1 multimedia suite, is yours for $89,95, or 31 percent off MSRP. PowerDVD 12 Ultra, is yours for $50, or 50-percent off MSRP.

In the store you’ll also find the latest 2013 versions of the most popular security tools, including AVG Anti-Virus 2013. This industry-standard antivirus tool is available for the massively discounted price of $9.95, which saves you a colossal 75-percent off the MSRP. For a more complete security solution, take a look at AVG Internet Security 2013, which includes an added firewall, spam filter and more -- all for just $17.99 (or a 67-percent discount). The most complete security package comes in the form of AVG Premium Security 2013 Complete Bundle, which includes four separate applications worth a total of $130 -- but you can buy the collection at a generous 69-percent discount for just $39.95.

Kaspersky produces security software that performs reliably and consistently. Store highlights include the multi-device Kaspersky ONE, which will enable you to support 3 different devices (3 PCs, 2 PCs and a Mac or, perhaps, 2 PCs and 1 Android device). Available for only $24.95, 69-percent off MSRP. Kaspersky Internet Security 2013 starts at $22.95 or 62-percent off MSRP, whilst Kaspersky Security for Mac 2013 is only $39.95, 33-percent off MSRP. More discounted security brands are available -- Avira Internet Security 2013 costs just $25.99, while the 3-PC version features an even better 67-percent saving at just $29.99.

Choosing the right system maintenance tool is essential. We could recommend three tools, the first being TuneUp Utilities 2013. You can save 50 percent from TuneUp Utilities 2013 [3-PC], ideal for installing on three home computers. If you have a single PC, save even more with TuneUp Utilities 2013 [1-PC]. There is also TuneUp Utilities 2013 [UPGRADE] for existing users to upgrade, at a significant discount. Another recommended maintenance tool is AVG PC TuneUp 2013, effectively a rebranded TuneUp Utilities, which helps you to eek extra performance from your machine. This great utility costs as mere $12.99, or a saving of 68% off the MSRP. Auslogics Boostspeed 5 is also worth considering for $19.95, 60-percent off MSRP.

Many homes have more than one computer and keeping them all protected can get expensive. However, if you invest in Bitdefender Internet Security 2013 [3-PC] can be used to ensure the safety of three PCs for just $29.95. Every computer should have at least an antivirus tool installed, and it’s hard to find something that’s better value than Bitdefender Antivirus Plus 2013 [1-PC], which costs just $6.95 with a reduction of 83 percent. You can save a fortune protecting all of the computes in your home with 74-percent off Bitdefender Antivirus Plus 2013 [3-PC] – a mere $12.95 to protect up to three computers.

Everyone needs a backup tool, whether this is to store important files in a secure location or to make a 1:1 copy of your hard drive, to safeguard against system failure. There are few better backup tools than True Image 2013 by Acronis (Acronis True Image 2013), available for only $24.99, which is currently half price.

Finishing off this selection of the latest and greatest offers are two tools from O&O, both of which place you in control of your hard drive. O&O Migration Kit for Windows 8, available for $22.45 ( a savings of 25-percent off the MSRP), is a bundle consisting of Laplink PCmover Professional 8 and O&O DiskImage 6.8, enabling you to migrate your installed applications and system data to a brand new Windows 8 PC. O&O Defrag 16 Professional is available at a 20-percent discount -- that’s just $23.95.

Of course, all these recent new releases can be found in the Downloadcrew Software Store along with a host of other offers -- take a look and see what else you can find.